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Lynch's Big Day Carries Springfield Past WNE

from press release

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Behind seven points
from senior captain Ryon Lynch (Frederick, Md.), consisting of four
goals and three assists, the Springfield College men's lacrosse
team defeated cross-town rival, Western New England University,
19-13, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday
evening in front of 2,500 fans at Stagg Field.

This marks the first time since 2009 that the Pride have scored
19 or more goals in an NCAA Tournament contest, dating back to when
the Pride defeated Mount Ida in the first round, 21-4.

With the win, the Pride will now advance to the second round and
travel to Cortland State University on Saturday. The Red Dragons
defeated Keuka College on Wednesday evening, 20-6.

Junior midfielder Bryce Serriello (Cape Cod, Mass.) was a force
from the midfield for Springfield, netting four goals and picking
up a pair of assists, while seniors Dom Roberto (Malden, Mass.) and
Devin Abad (East Longmeadow, Mass.) each tallied three goals of
their own. Senior face-off specialist, Branden Fernandez (Warwick,
N.Y.) was impressive once again at the "x", going 21-for-30 on the
day.

Senior goalkeeper Connor Nash (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) posted 12
saves and picked up the victory, while his counterpart, Brandon
Body (Newtown, Conn.) made 14 stops on 33 shots on goal from the
Pride.

Kevin Freeman (Minisink, N.Y.) got the scoring started when Ryan
Murphy (Mansfield, Mass.) fed him in the crease for an easy finish
to give the Pride a 1-0 advantage in the opening minutes of the
game.

Following suit, Serriello unleashed a shot from 12-yards out
which found the back of the net to give the Pride a 2-0 lead, only
to be followed by a Dylan Sheehan (Massapequa, N.Y.) goal in
transition to push the lead to three.

At the 5:38 mark of the opening quarter, Abad caught a pass from
Serriello and fired from the right side, netting his shot past Body
to give the Pride a 4-0 lead.

A pair of goals from Western New England from Owen Caruso (Port
Washington, N.Y.) and Keegan Dudeck (Longmeadow, Mass.) cut Western
New England's deficit in half heading into the waning seconds of
the first quarter.

Opening the second frame, Abad received a pass from Serriello on
the right side and let go a bounce-shot that tucked up underneath
the crossbar to help Springfield regain their three-goal lead with
12:33 left in the second quarter.

Just 2:29 later, Roberto buried a shot from the left alley to
put Springfield up 6-2 with 10:04 remaining in the second
stanza.

Midway through the second quarter, the Pride capitalized on a
man-up advantage when Serriello caught a pass from Abad and fired a
shot that got past Body to push the Pride's lead to five.

With a man-advantage of their own, Adam Knapton (Canandaigua,
N.Y.) buried a shot from the left side to make it 7-3, Springfield.
Just minutes later, Caruso found the back of the net for his second
goal of the game to cut the Golden Bears' deficit to three.

Following a goal from junior Matt Dalton (Somers, N.Y.), Lynch
picked up a loose ball in the crease and stuck a shot past Body to
give the Pride a 9-4 lead in the late minutes of the second
quarter.

After a strike from Serriello to open the second half, Sean
Lawton (Abington, Mass.) dodged down the left alley and tallied a
shot past Nash to make it 11-5, Springfield.

After both sides trading a pair of goals each with over a span
of 1:41, with Serriello and Murphy tallying the markers for the
Pride, Garrett Mullins (Jefferson Township, N.Y.) caught a pass
from Dudeck and found the back of the net to make it 13-8,
Springfield.

Senior Matt Fleisher (Ramapo, N.J.) then dodged through a pair
of Western New England defenders and fired a bounce-shot past Body
to give the Pride a five-goal lead, only to be erased by Knapton,
who scored in transition off of the ensuing faceoff, leaving the
Pride up 14-9.

At the 6:00 mark of the third quarter, Lynch picked up a rebound
in the crease and netted a shot past Body to help the Pride to
regain their six-point lead.

With just 1:48 left in the third quarter, Roberto caught a pass
up top and dodged down the left alley, netting a shot past Body on
the run to give the Pride a 16-9 advantage.

In the final seconds of the third quarter, Lawton caught a pass
on the right side from Caruso and fired a shot that found its way
past Nash to bring the score to 16-10, Springfield.

Just 18 seconds into the final stanza, Sheehan found Lynch on
the crease for a finish with an array of Western New England
defenders surrounding him to push the Pride's lead to seven.

With 10:21 remaining in the contest, Dudeck received a pass from
Justin McKinney (Niskayuna, N.Y.) along the wing and finished his
chance past Nash to make it 17-11, Springfield.

Just 2:21 later, a broken situation left Lynch all alone on the
crease, but with a pair of Western New England defenders closing in
on him, the senior fed Sheehan in the crease for a quick-stick goal
to make it 18-11, Pride.

After a pair of goals from Colton Craig (Gales Ferry, Conn.)
with 7:23 remaining followed by a tally from Knapton, Roberto
finished a shot in transition to close out the contest, 19-13.

The Pride will be heading to Cortland State University on
Saturday to take on the Red Dragons in the second round of the NCAA
Tournament. The game's start time has yet to be announced.

- See more at:
http://www3.springfieldcollege.edu/homepage/athletics.nsf/Headline/1F5BF0C1AFEFC4AA85257CD1007E1684#sthash.rsF6tDgk.dpuf